Car-coupling.



PATENTED APR. 18, 1905.

W. MOGONWAY, JR;

UAR COUPLING.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 3, 1904.

' 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

11018 531. PATENTED APR. 18, 1905;.

w. MoGONWAY, JR,

GAR COUPLING.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 3, 1904.

I Z'SHEETS BHI-EET 2.

A UNITED STATES Patented A rii1s, 1905.

PATENT OFFICE.

NVILLIAM MOCONIVAY, JR, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO THE MOCONVVAY & TORLEY COMPANY, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYL- VANIA, A CORPORATION OF PENNSYLVANIA.

CAR-COUPLING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 787,531, dated April 18, 1905,

Application filed December F, 1904. Serial No. 235,361.

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, IVILLIAB'I MoCoNwAY, J r., a citizen of the United States, residing at Pittsburg, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Car-Couplers; and I hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a plan view of a car-coupler embodying my invention, a portion of the coupler-head being broken away and one method of attaching the coupler to a car being illustrated, the draft-spring and followers of the attaching devices being omitted. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the coupler and the draftrigging devices shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical section of the coupler-head, taken on the line 3 3, Fig. 1, the parts being in locked position. Fig. 4: is a view corresponding to Fig. 3, but showing the lock supported in unlocked position, while the knuckle is in closed position. Fig.5 is an'enlarged plan View of the knuckle member of the coupler. Fig. 6 is a side elevation of the knuckle looking in the direction of the arrow, Fig. 5.

Like symbols refer to like parts Wherever they occur.

My invention relates particularly to the construction of thatclass of vertical-plane carcouplers in which the coupler-head is attached to the car-body-by a plurality of stems or connecting-rods which are pivotally or otherwise flexibly attached to the coupler-head; but the same is also applicable to the iisual construction of couplers employing a rigid shank whenwhile if the air-brake-hose be lengthened to compensate for an increased length of coupler-headthen when not connected with the hose of another car such hose drags upon the track and is liable to be torn from its connection with the car. To maintain the desired length of coupler-head, while at the same time assuring a strong and eflicient knuckle, I locate the knuckle-locking means to one side of the longitudinal axis of the coupler and on the knuckle side thereof, and so form the lugs or outer end of the knuckle and the tail or inner end of the knuckle that the angle between them facing the guard-arm side of the head is obtuse, the tail of the knuckle being provided with a spur or impact member, by means of which the knuckleis forced to a locked position by the impact of another coupler, and such a construction embodies one feature of my invention.

There are other minor features of invention-residing in particular constructions and elemental combinations, all as will hereinafter more fully appear. I

I will now proceed to describe my invention more fully, so that others skilled in the art to which it appertains may apply the same.

The manner here illustrated of connecting the type of coupler shown to the car-framing is well understood and therefore will not be described herein.

In the drawings chosen to illustrate my in vention, the scope whereof is hereinafter pointed out in the claims, A is a coupler-head of the three-stem type, the same being preferably provided at suitable points with a jaw l for the reception of the center stem and with laterally-located jaws 2 2 for the reception of the side stems, the said center stem and side stems being flexibly attached to their respective jaws by pivot-pins or in other suitable manner.

The lock B, which is located to one side of the longitudinal axis of the head and on the knuckle side thereof, is preferably a vertically-sliding pin guided in its movements by apertures in the upper and lower walls of the coupler-head, the said look, if desired, being adapted to form a housing for certain devices herein shown but not specifically claimed. The lock B, for a purpose which will hereinafter appear, is or may be provided with a notch or equivalent pocket 1 and with a lug or projection 2 below the latter, said notch and lug being preferably located adjacent to that part of the lock which abuts the knuckle when the parts are in a locked position.

The knuckle D, which is pivotally attached to the coupler-head by the usual and wellknown knuckle-pin C, is preferably so formed that the outer or lugs portion 1 upon one side of the knucklepin hole 3 and the inner or tail portion 2 upon the other side of such knuckle-pin hole form an obtuse angle facing toward the guard-arm side of the couplerhead, the tail of the knuckle f2 when closed thus assuming a position in which it is adapted to belocked by the lock B and the knucklepin hole 3, being thereby enabled to be located at such a point that the strength of the knuckle is least impaired thereby.

Upon the locking side of the tail 2 of the knuckle D and located in advance of and somewhat nearer the knuckle-pin hole 3 than is the locking face or abutment 4 thereof in order to permit the proper operation of the lock B the said knuckle D is preferably provided with a laterally-extending spur or equivalentimpact member 8, which when the knuckle is in an open position emerges through the opening in the face of the coupler-head and presents a curved face to receive the impact of an opposing knuckle in a coupling operation, thus relieving the outer or lugs portion 1 of the knuckle from undue wear of the opposing guard-arm and either supplementing the closing tendency of the knuckle due to the impact of such opposing guard-arm or supplanting such action accordingly as such laterallyextending impact member is arranged to emerge more or less from the said opening in the face of the coupler. The tail 2 of the knuckle D is also preferably provided upon its upper face with an inclined projection 5 for actuating the lock-set and knuckle-opener member upon an opening movement of the knuckle and beyond said projection 5 and adjacent to the inner end of the said knuckle- ,tail with a lock-supporting shelf 6", the latter being preferably of substantially wedge form and extending from the locking-face or abutment 4 of the locking portion of the knuckletail to or substantially to the end of the hook portion 7 thereof.

Secured within the head in such manner as to permit the rotation of the knuckle D, but preferably pivoted therein in such manner as to have a limited movement in any direction in the plane of its operation, is the lock-set and knuckle-opener member E, which is preferwhich passes the pivot-pin by means of which the said member E is attached to the couplerhead. The lock-set and knuckle-opener member E is provided with a detent member or finger 1, which is adapted to engage the lockset notch 1 of the lock B to support the latter in unlocked position and to engage the knuckle-opener lug or projection 2 of the said lock to open the knuckle, as will hereinafter appear. Upon the member E and pref erably located below'the detent 1 thereof is a depending lug or trip-finger 2 which upon an opening movement of the knuckle Dcoacts' with the inclined projection 5 of the knuckletail to cause the withdrawal of the detent 1' from supporting engagement with the lock D should such detent 1 have previously engaged the lock-set notch 1 in its support-ing capacity.

Extending downwardly behind the tail of the knuckle is the knuckle-opener arm 3 of the lock-set and knuckle-opener member E, said arm 3 preferably resting when the parts are in a locked position upon a supportingabutment 3 upon the floor of the coupler-head A, thus relieving the pivot-pin by which the member E is attached to the head from the weight of such member, and thereby permitting the said lock-set and knuckleopener member E to readily fall or move into engagement with the lock-set notch 1 of the lock B whenever the latter is raised sufficiently high.

The construction of the several parts being substantially such as hereinbefore pointed out, the operation of" the device in respect of the parts herein described will be as follows: Assuming the several parts to be in a locked position and the knuckle D to be restrained from rotation, an upward or unlocking movement of the lock B will cause the said lock B to assume a position in which the knuckle may be subsequently opened, the detent or lock-set finger i of the lock-set and knuckleopener member E entering the lock-set notch or pocket 1 of the lock B, and the latter being thus supported in an unlocked position. The lock being thus supported in an unlocked position, an opening movementof the knuckle will cause the inclined projection 5 to so coact with the trip-finger 2 of the lock-set and knuckle-opener member E that the detent finger 1 thereof is rotated out of the lock-set notch 1 of the lock B, and the latter being thus released from the supporting engagement of the said member E drops upon the lock-supporting shelf 6 of the knuckle D, upon which it rides until dropped before the knuckle to lock the same when the said knuckle is subsequently brought to a locked position. The closing movement of the knuckle also serves to return the knuckleopener arm 3 of the lock-set and knuckleopener member E to its position upon the abutment 3 of the coupler-head A. Should i 1 of the lock B to engage the detent 1 of the member E, which has previously moved into engagement with the said notch 1", and the knuckle-opener arm 3 of the member E is thus rotated to force the knuckle D outward by reason of the engagement of such knuckleopener arm 3 with the rear face of the knuckletail. hen the pull upon the lock B is released, said lock seats itself upon the lock-supporting shelf 6 of the knuckle, by which it is supported until the knuckle is returned to a locked position, the latter by such return to a locked position also restoring the knuckleopener arm 3 of the member E to its initial position on the abutment 3 of the couplerhead A.

By reason of the locatien of the lockingdevices upon the knuckle side of the couplerhead and the use of a knuckle having its portions on opposite sides of the knuckle-pin hole at an obtuse angle to each other it will be observed that the knuckle-pin may be so located that the combined lock-set and knuckleopener member may operate through a comparatively small distance in opening the.

knuckle, with the consequent desirable decrease in the movement of the lock.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a car-coupler, the combination with a coupler-head, of a lock, a knuckle having a' laterally-extending impact member upon the locking side of the tail thereof, and means operative by the lock for opening said knuckle,- substantially as and for the purposes specified.

2. In a car-coupler, the combination with a. couplerhead, of a lock located upon the knuckle side thereof, means operated by the lock for opening the knuckle, and a knuckle the lugs portion and the tail portion whereof form an obtuse angle facing the guard-arm' side of the coupler-head, said knuckle having an im pact member upon the tail thereof adapted to receive the impact of an opposing knuckle in a coupling operation, substantially as and for the purposes specified.

3. In a car-coupler having a plurality of stems, the combination with a coupler-head, of a lock located upon the knuckle side thereof, a knuckle, and means for opening, said knuckle, substantially as and for the purposes specified.

4. In a car-coupler having a plurality of stems, the combination with a coupler-head, of a lock located upon the knuckle side of the coupler-head, a knuckle, and a lock-set and knuckle-opener member-adapted to support the lock in unlocked position and also to open the knuckle, substantially as and for the purposes specified.

5. In a car-coupler, the combination with a coupler head, of a lock located upon the knuckle side thereof, a knuckle the lugs portion and the tail portion whereof form an obtuse angle facing the guard-arm side of the coupler-head, and a lock-set and a knuckleopener member adapted to support the lock in unlocked position and also to open the knuckle, substantially as and for the purposes specified.

6. In a car-coupler, the combination with a coupler head, of a lock located upon the knuckle side thereof, a knuckle the lugs portion and the tail portion whereof form an obtuse angle facing the guard-arm side of the coupler-head, said knuckle having an impact member upon the tail thereof, and a lock-set and knuckle-opener member adapted to support the lock in unlocked position and also to open the knuckle, substantially as and for the purposes specified.

7. A knuckle adapted for use with car couplers having the lock located on the knuckle side of thecoupler-head, said knuckle having a lugs portion and a tail portion, said tail portion being provided with a laterally-extending impact member and having an inclined projection adapted to actuate a lock-set member, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

8. In a car-coupler having a plurality of stems, the combination with a coupler-head, of a lock located upon the knuckle side thereof, a knuckle, and means automatically operative by an unlocking movement of the lock for supportlng said lock in unlocked position while the knuckle is in closed position, substantially as and for the purposes specified.

9. In a car-coupler having a center stem and side stems, the combination with a coupler-head, of a knuckle having a laterally-projecting impact member upon the tail thereof, and a lock for said knuckle located upon the knuckle side of the coupler-head and interposed between the center stem and a side stem, substantially as and for the purposes specified.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature, in presence of two witnesses, this 2d day of December, 1904:.

WILLIAM MOCONWAY, JR.

I/Vitnesses:

GEO. W. M. GANDLEss, JOHN KoNsTANzER. 

